PEIFA Today – Thursday, April 20, 2017

Dairy farmers on P.E.I. say they are not worried about U.S.president Donald Trump’s criticism of Canada’s supply management system. MORE

Province warns about grass fire danger

Fire crews on P.E.I. had to respond to at least eight brush fires over the Easter weekend. MORE

The Farm Network takes farm food products beyond local

The Farm Network is pioneering a new category of food business, helping farmers grow their sales of local products to reach commercial scale MORE

Environmental Farm Plan Renewals

The Enhanced Environmental Farm Plan Program sent out renewal letters in early 2017 to notify producers that their environmental farms plans would be expiring at the end of the year. If you are a producer who has not yet contacted the office to have your plan updated please call Matt or JoAnn at 902-368-7289.

EFP’s are valid for 5 years and we encourage all farmers to participate in the program. Participation in the program also allows you to apply for funding through the Growing Forward 2 Agriculture Stewardship Program, Farmland Finance Program and the Future Farmer Program. For your convenience the EFP can be completed at your farm or at the PEI Federation of Agricultural office and takes approximately 1.5 hrs to complete. EFP’s are no cost to the producer.

If you feel your EFP may be expired and you have not yet been contacted please call the office and we will check the status of your last plan. Further information on the Enhanced Environmental Farm Plan Program can be found on the PEI Federation of Agriculture webpage www.peifa.ca/efp/

Draft National Plant and Animal Health Strategy Ready For Consultation

FPT Governments, Industry, Academia and others have partnered together to develop a Plant and Animal Health Strategy for Canada to protect Canada’s plant and animal resources. The Strategy is intended to protect plants and animals from new and emerging risks by focusing efforts on coordinating partner actions to collaborate and provide a more effective approach to risk prevention, mitigation, response and recovery.

Corn silage use is trending on Quebec’s large dairy farms, but Valacta’s Robert Berthiaume argues farmers who run against the herd can bulk up their bottom line with perennial forages. MORE

Beef 911: Easy treatments for young calves?

Over the years many of the effective treatments for bacterial scours and some for pneumonia in newborn calves have been taken away from us. Other antibiotics used in conditions such as viral scours are simply precautionary to prevent secondary bacterial invasion. MORE

Live cattle futures up for 9th straight session

Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures rose on Wednesday for the ninth consecutive session, and hit a one-year high for a second day in a row, after cash prices exceeded expectations, traders said. MORE

Beef Fuels Team Beef in Boston

Thanks to the national beef checkoff, beef was front and center during the 121st Boston Marathon on 17 April. MORE

March Retail Beef Prices Up Compared to Previous Month

Retail beef prices in March increased compared to the previous month but they were still about 5 per cent lower than the previous year and down 7.9 per cent from the peak in May 2015, reports Steiner Consulting Group, DLR Division, Inc. MORE

Which Production Attributes are Most Important to Consumers

For many consumers, buying a gallon of milk is much more complex than finding the preferred fat content and expiration date. They want to know how the cows were treated, what they were fed, whether they received growth hormones or antibiotics, whether the milk is organic, and so on. MORE

Trump wins support for possible WTO action on Canada dairy

Australia and New Zealand dairy industry leaders say they would support moves by the United States to draw the World Trade Organization into a trade dispute with Canada, after President Donald Trump said existing rules were unfair. MORE

Canadian Pork Excellence Incorporates Latest Research, Technology

The Manager of Quality Assurance and Animal Care Programmes with Manitoba Pork says the update of Canada’s on farm food safety and animal care programme incorporates the latest research and technology, Bruce Cochrane writes. MORE

Retail Pork Prices Sharply Higher in March

Retail pork prices were sharply higher in March, largely due to the run-up in the price of bellies the previous month, reports Steiner Consulting Group, DLR Division, Inc. MORE

Reciprocal Recognition of Food Safety with US of Mutual Benefit

Australian exporters are in a significantly stronger position as preferred suppliers of safe, high quality food to the United States of America (USA) after the signing of a bilateral Food Safety Recognition Agreement this month. MORE

Christopher Rowe brings more than 30 years of industry experience to Tiger-Sul Products. MORE

Carisma is back! Lower GR Potato Returns to Ontario Grocery Stores

Potato lovers rejoice! Following a highly successful launch in 2016, Canadian produce company EarthFresh is bringing its lower glycemic response (GR)* Carisma potato back to Ontario grocery retailers for an extended season. MORE

2016 Retail Year in Review

2016 provided a lot of new information for the retail sector of the potato industry. Russet potatoes continued to dominate the retail landscape in 2016, with a 65 percent share of the total volume of potatoes sold at retail. MORE

Efforts to Eradicate Idaho Nematodes Succeeding

Federal officials say progress is being made in eradicating a microscopic pest that has been threatening Idaho’s $900 million potato industry for the last decade. MORE

Splitting N Applications Improves Efficiency

Proper management of split applications provides nitrogen when plants need it most MORE

Potato Production India estimated at 47 million tonnes.

The potato production in India is estimated to be around 47 million tonnes for this crop year, just behind the all-time high witnessed in 2014. MORE

First large-scale Solynta Hybrid seed potato trials highly successful

Potato breeder Solynta started a potato revolution nearly ten years ago: to develop and apply new breeding technologies to convert potatoes into a hybrid crop. Years of research went into the development of a hybrid potato. MORE

North-Western European Potato Growers (NEPG) estimates that the increase in potato acreage in the North-West European countries will grow by 3.6% in 2017, compared to 2016. MORE

Bejo introduces its first True Potato Seed variety

Bejo has obtained breeder’s rights on its first True Potato Seed (TPS) variety. This new potato hybrid, Oliver F1, can be cultivated directly from botanical seeds and, after transplanting, produces table potatoes in one season. MORE

Venezuela: The delay in seed imports complicates potato production

The potato production’s problems multiplied this season. The delay in seed imports was decisive. The sowing cycle began later than usual and 50% of the crop was lost at the start of the rainy season. MORE

The first case of stripe rust this growing season was found in a Manitoba winter wheat field near Austin April 17, but the fungal disease was detected in the same crop last fall. MORE

You may be ready for seeding, but is your land?

There’s little doubt that in recent years Manitoba farmers have been getting the crop in earlier and earlier. MORE

Get a jump in April with these jobs

It’s still a bit early to get into the field, but here are a few jobs you can do now to set yourself up for success this season. MORE

Province ‘optimistic’ vegetable processor will reopen

Receiver is working on a marketing package to pitch to potential new owners, says government spokesperson MORE

What’s your canola-seeding rate?

When it comes to putting in canola, few decisions are more important than getting the seeding rate right. MORE

How early is too early to seed canola?

Fields may have soil temperatures adequate for canola establishment and enough moisture for emergence, but should growers seed canola in early to mid-April? MORE

Soy futures edge higher

U.S. soybean futures firmed on Wednesday, posting a mild recovery from two days of losses after holding technical support above the one-year lows hit last week. MORE

China to work off corn stockpile in three to five years

China will work off its corn stockpile in the next three to five years, said an executive at one of the country’s top corn processing firms on Wednesday, as firms ramp up processing capacity to use up the old stocks of grain. MORE

2018 Farm Bill: Have your voice heard in crafting the next Farm Bill
Congress considers the Farm Bill only once every five years. The 2014 Farm Bill expires on September 30, 2018 and the Senate Agriculture Committee has already begun the process of crafting the new bill. The upcoming 2018 Farm Bill will provide many opportunities to continue support for Michigan jobs, farmers and families. MORE

Mutually Beneficial Plan to Balance Sino-US Ties

The meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump concluded on a positive note with the two sides agreeing on a 100-day plan to boost their relationship by taking concrete measures to balance bilateral trade. MORE

Innovation PEI, in partnership with the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) are seeking interest from PEI-based enterprises and organizations to participate in a multi-sector Business Mission to South Korea during the week of May 15-19, 2017. MORE

This mission will serve to enhance existing export relationships, provide opportunities for market expansion while at the same time providing an exceptional opportunity to introduce companies to this strong market. Korea is the 13th largest economy in the world and is one of the largest importing countries on the planet. P.E.I.’s exports to Korea in 2016 were almost $15 million and Canadian products/suppliers are much sought after for our high quality and reputation to deliver. This mission will be of particular interest to companies in the professional services, ICT, clean tech, education, manufacturing and food sectors. The customization of each delegate’s business development program to advance their mission-week and market objectives will be a core feature of this initiative.

During this week the Seoul Food and Hotel Show will be taking place offering mission participants a chance to see first-hand the breadth of product offering and to gather key market intelligence. While there is a Canada pavilion at this event, P.E.I. will not have a booth at the show for this year. Participants will be able to walk the show. However we will also be exploring this opportunity for future years. For details on the Seoul Hotel and Food Show visit http://www.seoulfoodnhotel.co.kr/

For more information on this mission and to express your interest in participating, please contact either of these mission leads by email or by phone: